Marco Rubio ducks genuine debate over his amnesty legislation

Last week, Bret Baier’s Special Report program on Fox News featured interviews with Marco Rubio and Jeff Sessions about the Rubio-Schumer amnesty legislation. The interviews were given separately. Although Baier tried his best to make it into a point-counterpoint kind of affair, it couldn’t really be a debate because Rubio and Sessions didn’t appear together.

I understand that Baier, naturally enough, would have preferred to have Sessions and Rubio on together. And I am reliably informed that Sen. Sessions wanted to appear with Sen. Rubio for a genuine (and if possible, an extended) true point-counterpoint discussion. Unfortunately, Rubio would not agree to appear with Sessions.

It’s easy to understand why. Rubio is a decent debater, but he’s been getting away with murder in non-debate formats where he can misrepresent the contents of his bill — perhaps (to put things in the most favorable light for Rubio) because he doesn’t fully understand what it says.

In a debate with someone of Sessions’ caliber, Rubio couldn’t pull this off. That’s why he confines himself to interviews with hosts who, if not sympathetic to his legislation, are sympathetic to him personally, and who deal with him in the capacity of host, not adversary.

Unfortunately, for Rubio, the this respectful treatment will end rather abruptly if he runs for president and thus must appear in real debates. Unfortunately for most conservatives, by then it may be too late to escape from the handiwork of Rubio and Chuck Schumer.